In racing video games, such as on a desktop computer, video game console, or other system, a player typically maneuvers a racer along a track in a virtual environment. Exemplary racers may include race cars or other vehicles, player avatars, and other racing entities. Furthermore, racing typically includes a competitive characteristic, such as racing for speed or accuracy (e.g., through gates), jumping for distance, racing with fuel conservation goals, dog fighting, etc. Such competitive characteristics can challenge the player in controlling the racer along a path, such as a race track or other route.
However, competitive racing, even in the virtual worlds of video games, requires a high level of skill and experience in order to achieve reasonable success. The variable racing environments, high-performance vehicles, and sophisticated AI or human competitors can present a steep learning curve for an uninitiated player. Some video games provide training features and sequences to help a new player learn the controls and fundamental skills required to initially compete in these environments. However, existing approaches fail to provide assistance that is sufficiently fine-grained, dynamic, unobtrusive, progressive, and accurate to provide a significant benefit for most new players.